Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Mehdi Hassan was born in the village of Luna in Jhunjhunu district in Rajasthan, India in 1927 into a Shia Muslim family of traditional musicians. He claims to be the 16th generation of hereditary musicians hailing from the Kalawant.

He received his musical training under his father, Ustad Azeem Khan and his uncle Ustad Ismail Khan who were classical musicians, well-versed in the dhrupad style of singing. They instructed him in classical music and voice production within the framework of classical forms of thumri, dhrupad, khayal and dadra, from the age of eight.

Hassan started to perform at a young age and the first concert of dhrupad and kheyal with his elder brother is reported to have been held in Fazilka Bungla, near present SDM Court (1935) district Ferozepur of Undivided Punjab. After the Partition of India, 20-year-old Hassan and his family migrated to Pakistan and suffered severe financial hardships. To make ends meet, Hassan began working in a bicycle shop and later became a car and diesel tractor mechanic.The struggle ended when Mehdi Hassan was given the opportunity to sing on Radio Pakistan in 1952, primarily as a thumri singer, which earned him recognition within the musical fraternity. At the time, Ustad Barkat Ali Khan, Begum Akhtar and Mukhtar Begum were considered the stalwarts of ghazal gayaki.

He also had a passion for Urdu poetry and began to experiment by singing ghazals on a part-time basis. He cites radio officers Z.A. Bukhari and Rafiq Anwar as additional influences in his progression as a ghazal singer.

Following a severe illness in the late 80s, Mehdi Hassan stepped down from playback singing. Later due to severity of his illness he completely departed from music. He now lives a secluded life in Karachi which he has made his permanent residence. Nevertheless he often visits Lahore where he spends most of his time with his children and other family members.While he was singing in the Court of Nepal's King Shah Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, he forgot the lines of his song "Zindagi mein to sabhii pyar kya kerte hain". Shah, then stood from his seat and start singing the next line.

He has been the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions: the Tamgha-i-Imtiaz granted to him by Gen Ayub Khan; the Pride of Performance bestowed on him by Gen Ziaul Haq; and the Hilal-i-Imtiaz conferred by Gen Pervez Musharraf. Besides the Nigar Film and Graduate Awards from Pakistan, he was presented the Saigal Award in Jalandhar, India, in 1979, whereas the Gorkha Dakshina Bahu Award was given to him in Nepal in 1983. Recently, he travelled to Dubai to receive yet another award.

Beautiful Fazilka

Fazilite Network..

About Fazilka...

160 year old historical town Fazilka of District Ferozepur, also known as Bangla, is located in southwestern Punjab (INDIA), about 325 kms west of Punjab State Capital Chandigarh, 85 km south-west of the district headquarters, Ferozepur and 200 km south of Amritsar. Fazilka is on India -Pakistan border and is 11 km off the international border with Pakistan. It is situated on the rice growing and cotton rich belt of the state and is one of the major rice exporting centers in India. Before partition, the town was the biggest wool market in undivided Punjab.

Fazilka’s origin dates back to AD 1844. It was established by Mr. Oliver and was christened after the original owner of the land, Mian Fazil Watoo. The first railway line through the town was setup in AD 1898 on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee celebration of the accession of Queen Victoria. Being at the border, Fazilka also had to bear the brunt of the two Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971.

The famous ‘Tosha’ sweets have its origin in Fazilka. The first single cylinder steam ship in the world, Fazilka, was named after this town. Fazilka is also home to the second biggest TV tower in Asia, which stands at 305 m above the ground.
Amritsar International Airport and Ludhiana Domestic Airport serves Fazilka. Fazilka Railway Station is located on Abhor- Ferozepur Region of Northern Railways. National Highway 10 passes through Fazilka.

Geography & Demography of the City:

As of 2001 India census,Fazilka had a population of 67,424. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Fazilka has an average literacy rate of 68%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 72%, and female literacy is 62%. In Fazilka, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age